CTIA - The Wireless Association(R) President and CEO Largent Warns of Increased Cost to Wireless Consumers Due to State Regulation.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- CTIA - The Wireless Association(R) President and CEO Steve Largent appeared before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee today to reiterate the wireless industry's concern about increasing efforts by states to enact costly regulations.

The committee was holding its third hearing on the Communications, Consumer's Choice, and Broadband Deployment Act of 2006 (SB 2686), sponsored by Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) and co-sponsored by Committee Co-Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii).

During his testimony, Largent asked members of the committee to improve the bill by adding language that would re-establish a strong and consistent national regulatory framework for wireless service.

"Over the course of the last year, I have closely followed the debate and rationale as to why Congress needs to update our national communications laws which have led us to this point today," said Largent. "The purpose is simple -- create a national deregulatory framework, induce competition, spur innovation and lower customer prices. Ironically, while Congress is working to increase competition and innovation in other telecom sectors vis-a-vis a national framework, state legislatures and PUCs throughout this country are working hard to impose disparate and conflicting state-by-state regulations on the industry I represent."

Largent urged Senators to again embrace the pro-competition, pro-consumer mindset that thirteen years ago led to the establishment of an enormously successful federal framework for wireless service. In his written testimony, Largent referred to the many benefits wireless consumers have collected since the 1993 Act of Congress and questioned what additional state regulation would accomplish.

"Opponents to the continued national, light-touch regulation Congress put in place in 1993 claim they are trying to protect wireless consumers. Here is the pivotal question you need to be asking -- protect wireless consumers from what? Lower prices? More providers to choose from? More choices among rate plans? Innovative new devices with features like camera phones that are sleekly designed?" said Largent.

Largent also pointed out that wireless consumer complaints to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had plummeted by 37% over the past year and now stand at just 22 complaints per one million wireless consumers. The publication of the FCC's complaint data is bolstered by two recent consumer studies, one out of the University of Michigan and the other from J.D. Power and Associates, that found overall wireless customer satisfaction to have increased significantly.

CTIA is the international association for the wireless telecommunications industry, representing carriers, manufacturers and wireless Internet providers.

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